Toad considered for endangered listing
Designation may affect power plant
RENO, Nev. — U.S. wildlife officials have agreed to consider Endangered Species Act protection for a rare toad in northern Nevada’s high desert where one of the biggest producers of geothermal energy in the nation wants to build a power plant.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Tuesday that conservationists presented substantial scientific information suggesting the Dixie Valley toad could be at risk of extinction. Its 12-month review will include examining the extent to which any conservation efforts have reduced the threats.
The 2-inch-long toad with flecks of gold on its olive-colored body was discovered in 2007 in thick underbrush of a spring-fed marsh in the Dixie Valley, where an ancient lake once covered 190,000 square miles.
It’s only found in an area covering less than 3 square miles in the marshy remnant of the lakebed east of Reno, Nevada.
U.S. land managers are considering Ormat Technologies’ plans for a geothermal plant there next to the U.S. Naval Air Station Fallon.
Officials with the Arizonabased Center for Biological Diversity, which filed the petition seeking protection for the toad last September, said the wildlife agency’s decision is critical to the future of one of the most vulnerable species in Nevada.
“This special toad is now one step closer to getting the lifesaving protection it needs,” said Jenny Loda, a biologist and lawyer for the group.
A federal listing could trigger land-use restrictions, but it’s not clear how it might directly impact plans for the geothermal plant in a state with a mandate to procure 25 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2025.
Officials with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management said Tuesday the wildlife service’s determination wouldn’t immediately affect their review of the geothermal project.